Spring of Swans And Thorns
by enchanted07
Summary: After her wings are taken away form her, Maleficent finds herself carrying Stefan's offspring. After what she believes to be her daughter's murder, she locks herself in grieve and revenge. Now imprisoned and sentenced to death, she desires a moment with the daughter she sent away. At the same time, in a land not so far away, the Black Swan rises.
1. Prologue

**Summary:** **After losing her wings, Maleficent finds herself carrying Stefan's offspring. After what she believes to be her daughter's murder, she locks herself in grieve and revenge. Now imprisoned and sentenced to death, she desires a moment with the daughter she sent away. At the same time, in a land not so far away, the Black Swan rises.**

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own the movie, or the ballet Swan Lake.**

**A/N:** **I saw the movie on Wednesday and completely fell in love with it. Half way through the movie, this idea came to me, and ever since, I couldn't get it out of my head. This is just a prologue that I had to write down in order to be able to concentrate on the last assignments I have to do for school, so I hope it is not too rushed, or detail-lacking for a short beginning.**

**English is not my first language, so I apologize for any spelling or grammar mistakes that are most likely to occur.**

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**Spring of Swans And Thorns**

**Prologue**

"_And I'm here to remind you_

_Of the mess you left when you went away_

_It's not fair to deny me_

_Of the cross I bear that you gave to me_

_You, you, you oughta know"_

_Alanis Morissette - __You Oughta Know_

_After years spent breathing the air of these lands, I have come to the conclusion that all stories are satirized versions of one's existence. For we only hear the side of the story the storyteller wishes to share with us. And most of the times, the story always ends with the antagonist defeated and the hero embracing their happy ending. _

_The story I am going to tell you is not the story of a hero. Some would say it is the story of a great evil. I say it is the story of someone who is both hero and villain. And for once, I am not talking about myself. It is a story you have heard, but it is not the story you know. And it begins like this…_

_Time heals all wounds. Or so they say. But in our case, time only emphasized the sorrows of her heart. _

_Once upon a time, she used to be the strongest of the fairies. The protector of the Moors. Her wings had been so big, they hung behind her when she walked. Her life had been filled with the joy of flying. However, there had been one thing bringing her down every time she rose into the air. Actually, there had been one person. And his name had been Stefan. Even when they had begun to drift apart, she had always had hope. Hope that one day, he would come back to her. Every time she had to leave the solace of the sky, she landed with that hope in her heart._

_And then one day, her wish had been granted. He had come back to her. And he had brought her down forever._

* * *

Maleficent wrapped her arms around herself as her eyes wandered between the walls of the ruined castle. With her back collided with the cold stone, she was aware of the sharp remains of her wings.

She still couldn't believe she had given herself to him just hours before he'd stolen her happiness. Her wings had been everything to her after he'd left. And now, he'd left yet again, this time for good, and she was alone, without the comfort of rising to the sky. Carrying his offspring…

A sob escaped form her lips, making her aware of the tears that were running down her cheeks. She placed her hands on her stomach, trying to decide what to do with the baby growing inside her. She'd considered killing it, but then he wouldn't even know of its existence. And she didn't know whether or not she could end the life of a child.

As she blinked away more tears, her mind began to wonder. Wonder whether or not it would be born with wings. If it would… Then she'd sent it to him, so he would know. Or maybe she'd take its wings first…

Closing her eyes, Maleficent took the decision.

* * *

As the castle came into view, Maleficent lowered her eyes to the bundle she carried in her arms. Her and Stefan's baby. A girl born with the same wings her mother had once possessed. The wings he had stolen form her. The girl was sleeping without the slightest clue of the danger awaiting her on the other side of the hill.

Taking her eyes away from the baby, Maleficent took a step forward.

* * *

She was gone. Her girl was gone. She'd never imagined calling Stefan's offspring hers. But she'd been more hers than she'd ever been his. He'd done what she hadn't been able to. He'd killed his own daughter. Their daughter. Not even blinking.

Not allowing the sobs to escape her lips, Maleficent rose to her feet. She was done hiding inside those ruins. He was going to pay for what he'd done to her…for what he'd done to her daughter. And if he ever had another child, she was going to make sure it had the same faith as her baby girl.

* * *

_Now you know how it all began… But you know nothing at all. You haven't even seen the last of me. And if you are wondering who I am, well, the answer is quite simple. My name is Odile. And Maleficent, the dark fairy is my mother. And in order to know her story…you need to know mine._

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**A/N:**** Thank you very much for reading.**

**I would like to say that this story would follow the plots of both the movie and the ballet, but with quite some twists regarding the latter. **

**With the narrative parts, I was trying a different style of writing, but I feel like it does not quite appeal to me, so we may not see Odile as a narrator from now on.**

**Please do not hesitate to let me know what you think by reviewing. **

**Oh, and if you are wondering, I picture Odile as Danielle Campbell. **


	2. Sisters by Blood

**Summary:** **After losing her wings, Maleficent finds herself carrying Stefan's offspring. After what she believes to be her daughter's murder, she locks herself in grieve and revenge. Now imprisoned and sentenced to death, she desires a moment with the daughter she sent away. At the same time, in a land not so far away, the Black Swan rises.**

**Disclaimer:** **I do not own the movie, or the ballet Swan Lake.**

**A/N:** **Thank you so much for the amazing feedback. I apologize for the late update, but school seems to not be ending. Plus, I received City of Heavenly Fire…and…THE FEELS…Brother *caught* *****caught***** Zachariah *caught* *****caught*****…and that's all I'm going to say.**

**I've mixed another fairytale in, so I hope you'll enjoy it. And yes, there is an ****Once Upon A Time reference, mainly because I identify it with the character.**

**English is not my first language, so I apologize for any spelling or grammar mistakes that are most likely to occur.**

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**Spring of Swans And Thorns**

**Chapter 1 – Sisters by Blood**

Queen Leila kept her eyes down as she walked past the servants getting the castle ready for the night. She muttered "Goodnight" to everyone that greeted her, but ignored the maid that asked her about the last pieces of furniture needed for the baby's room.

Only when her hand touched the metal knob of the door leading to the forgotten storage room did she allow herself to take her gaze away from the floor. As the door closed behind her, Leila's hands wrapped around her stomach, trying to protect her unborn daughter from what was about to come.

She knew she was early, but she couldn't bear to hear Stefan talk about the baby's christening any longer. Not when the thought of never holding the girl in her arms kept her awake at night. Sighting, Leila looked for a place to sit down in the dusted room and waited, praying he would never come. She knew she shouldn't fall asleep and allow the nightmares in, but her eyes were starting to close and she longed for a moment of numbness…

As the clocks stoke midnight, a sudden move awoke the queen from her restless sleep. As she rubbed her eyes, an enormous owl made its way to her broken chair, waving its wings in what looked like disappointment.

As the owl began to metamorphose into a man, Leila tried to steady her breathing. "You are not getting enough sleep." The dark haired man said as he studied her with his dark eyes. "My daughter must be growing weaker and weaker inside you, dearie."

Leila's vision began to blur, and she held on to the chair so tight, her knuckles began to whiten. She focused on her breathing, counting until her vision was clear again. She couldn't risk an early birth right now.

"Don't you dare call _my_ daughter yours!" she rose to her feet too fast, and needed to place one hand on the chair to steady herself, while the other one remained on her stomach. "And pay respect to your _Queen_."

As the man burst into laughter, Leila cursed her voice for being so weak, so uncertain. "You, Queen? Tell, me then, what _queen_ gives up her virtue before marriage, having a child out of wedlock with a man she wasn't certain would become king?" His words stabbed her like blades, and she tightened the grip on her belly. " Were you certain your father was not going to make it though? I would say not, as you called for me, begging to save his life."

"And you failed." She glared at him with as much hate as could, because it was his fault her father had died.

"I would not say failed. Rather, willingly let him die." Leila felt her knees failing her, but held on to the chair with both hands this time. She'd suspected the wizard had indeed been the cause of her father's death. But hearing it out loud…

"Now, dearie, let's waste no more time. Do you have a guess?"

Leila stared right through him as she opened her mouth to speak. "No."

Another laugh escaped from his lips. "I cannot believe _you _really are your mother's daughter. She was so fierce…guessed to whole night, and the whole following night. And on the final one, she'd seemed so careless … _she_ had always been a queen more than she had ever been a miller's daughter. But you… I cannot believe it was you she had risked tricking me for."

Leila's vision began to blur again. Her mother had died when she'd still been an infant, and her father had rarely spoken of her. But what he was saying…that her mother had been in the same situation, the fact that she'd managed to save Leila…

"It's a shame you cannot ask her." He began to metamorphose back into an owl, his voice echoing through the room. "Till, tomorrow night, dearie."

With a cry, she collapsed into the chair, holding on to her belly while tears streamed down her cheeks.

* * *

**2 days later **

Leila stared with exhaustion as the maids cleaned her daughter. She wanted nothing more than to close her eyes, and feel nothing at all, but she knew she had only hours left till he'd come to retrieve her daughter.

One of the maids approached her bed with the crying baby in her strong arms. _She feels him coming, _Leila thought as her daughter was placed in her arms.

"What is her name, Your Majesty?" the plump woman asked, adjusting her bonnet.

Stefan had suggested many name…Dawn, Elisa, Aurora… but Leila had decided long ago what the name of her first born daughter would be…

"Odette. Her name is Odette."

"A lovely name, Your Ma…" the plump woman was interrupted by another maid bursting into the chamber.

"King Stefan requires your immediate presence in the throne room, Your Majesty."

Leila felt her blood rushing._ Stefan_. He had no idea of what she'd done, desperate to save her father. He couldn't let him see Odette, knowing she would never be able to call him 'Father'. The queen didn't understand what was so urgent, after she 'd just given birth…

"Help me get dresses and ask the guards to watch my daughter."

* * *

Leila let a guard half-drag her towards the throne room. She could barely move, but she knew Stefan would have never called for her if it weren't important.

As she entered the ginormous room her father had once ruled from, the blonde woman was shocked by the view waiting for her in the all too familiar setting.

Her husband was bent over a small figure wrapped in blankets, his sword raised, and ready for a fatal blow. In an instant, it wasn't the faceless baby crying helplessly for mercy, but her Odette, and the queen ran forward, protecting the child with her weakened body.

Stefan jerked the sword back, and looked at her with anger in his eyes. "What do you think you are doing?" he barked, and Leila almost didn't recognize him, the fury transfiguring his features. He looked almost…mad.

"It's just a baby."

"Just a baby? Look at it!"

Leila turned her head and gasped when she saw the black wings emerging from the little girl's back. They looked like she'd imagined the wings of the creature that had caused her father's illness would have looked like.

"It's a fairy baby. It does not belong in our world."

"Wh-who brought it here? And why?" Leila turned to look at her husband.

"I ended the life of the fairy that threatened your father. I must have enemies among those winged creatures. They probably heard about our daughter…"

Leila felt shivers run down her spine at his words. But there was something that frightened her even more. The look in Stefan's eyes, like there was something else going on, something he wasn't telling her…

He was right. The creature did not belong there. She wanted it gone just as much as Stefan did, but the though of never seeing Odette again made her not wish the death of the fairy child. Only if…

She rose to her feet so fast she tripped and would have hit the ground, if Stefan hadn't caught her. She met his dark gaze and pleaded with her eyes, for the sake of their own child. "Let me take it back to the Moors. You won't have to see it ever again…"

Stefan's grip on her hands tightened. "And let the fairies mock me? Are you insane? It needs to be slaughtered, to show them I am not afraid of their kind."

"Stefan, please!" She was crying now, the tears blurring her vision. "You do not understand! This is about our daughter! Please, let me take her…"

"Guards!" Three men entered the room at the sound of Stefan's voice. Leila recognized one of them as Daniel Hastings, the man her father had trusted and loved like a brother. His graying hair was falling into his face and he seemed just as tires as she was. The smile he gave her didn't calm her like it used to do.

"Take the queen to her chambers, as she is in no position of taking rational decisions right now." Leila began to protest, but froze into place at her husband's next words. "Ser Hastings, take the creature to the Moors border. This needs to be done on fairy ground."

Leila let the guards guide her towards the doors, but broke free the moment she heard the door close behind Ser Hastings. She dragged herself towards him and his kind eyes were full of concern and regret.

The old man lifted his hand to stop the guards from approaching them. "I'll take the queen to her chambers myself." The guards began to protest, but stopped when the gray-haired man grabbed Leila's hand and guided her toward the vast corridor leading to her rooms.

When they were alone, Daniel Hastings turned to look at Leila, the fairy baby crying and struggling in his arms. "What is it, child?" his voice was hoarse, but calm, just like her father's had been. He had to understand…Her father would've understood…

"Ser Hastings, please! Let me take her. I've…I've made a deal with someone, hoping he could save Father…I must give him a baby…" She knew she wasn't being coherent, but the clock was ticking, and Odette's small face was hunting her like the ghost she'd soon become.

Ser Hastings' eyes darkened and he looked at her with genuine sadness. "Like mother, like daughter." He sighted and looked down at the winged creature. "Your husband is not going to be happy with me…I'll take the risk, for I know is what your father would've wanted. But listen to me child. The creature you've got involved with…It cannot be tricked easily…your mother succeeded, but he had grown stronger since then…be careful, Leila."

She nodded and thanked the man who had just ruined his life for her and her daughter. After everything would be over, she'd help him run away, to a place where Stefan would never find him. She grabbed the small fairy and darted up the stairs with what little energy she had left.

As she opened the door to the storage room, the clocks struck midnight. He was already there, with his back towards her, looking down the small window. "Are you ready to make your final guess, dearie?"

"I…I want to make another deal with you…a child of the fairies for my own daughter."

His laughter made Leila shiver and the baby in her arms began to cry again. He turned to face her and she felt the ground beneath her feet shake as her eyes fell on his arms. For he was holding her Odette. The girl was sleeping peacefully…too peacefully. The fairy began to struggle in her arms and Leila leaned on the stonewall for support.

"I do not break deals, dearie. But I'll make a new one." With a flip of his hand, the fairy was also in his arms, her screams stopping. Terror stroked Leila as she saw that it had fallen into the same trance as Odette.

"The faeries shall believe your husband has slaughtered the infant. Everyone shall forget about the existence of your first-born. Everyone…except for you. Your old guard knight shall keep both his head and rank. But…"

Leila wanted to scream, to hit him, to make him pay…but she found herself unable to move. "If you ever, try to look for your daughter, she shall pay the price for her mother disobedience."

His gaze fell on the two babies resting in his arms. "Odette, isn't it? Pretty name…and you?" he said looking at the dark-winged child. "I'd say, Odile, to fit the theme."

His laugh was the last thing Leila remembered before darkness surrounded her, and she hit the cold stone.

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**A/N:** **Thank you so much for reading. Hope you'll enjoy the entire story as you've enjoyed the prologue. **

**For those of you that wonder, there will be Maleval from the third chapter on. The next chapter will be Odette and Odile's childhood.**

**If you are wondering, I picture Odile as Danielle Campbell and Odette, obviously, as Dakota Fanning.**


End file.
